Ridgeway in Orleans County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

The Medina Culvert

By Anton Schwarzmueller, March 22, 2015

1. The Medina Culvert Marker

Inscription. The first and only road culvert ever built under the Erie Canal passes directly below here. The culvert was built in 1823 during construction of Clinton's Ditch. Its cornerstone, which still exists, is part of the foundation of the Vernon Toussaint home at 3704 Culvert Road.

The original culvert was dismantled in 1854 and rebuilt in 1855 on the Enlarged Canal's new alignment nearby. Forty years later it was substantially altered during the Nine Million Dollar Improvement of 1895.

The construction of the New York State Barge Canal (1905-1918) widened and refaced the road culvert and, however unknowingly, conserved this unique structure, preserving its historical significance for future generations. Cars and trucks continueto [sic] use the Medina Culvert today. [caption] Reconstruction of the south facing of the Medina Culvert in 1908.

Culverts Culverts were designed and built throughout the Erie Canal system to channel strams and stormwater under the canal and into the river. This avoided the possibility of undermining the canal or flooding its banks. Essentially, culverts sered as cut stone water drains with an opening at either end, although some, like the one at Solay, were double culverts. The largest exceeded 150 feet in length. [caption] View today of the entrance to the Medina Culvert.
For more information

By Anton Schwarzmueller, March 22, 2015

2. The Medina Culvert Marker - Westward

On the Canalway Trail.

please visit www.nyscanals.gov.

[captions] Engineer's plan of the Arch Culvert, a cut stone culvert from the Enlarged Erie Canal. The dive culvert at Port Byron, New York. Culvert at Chenango, 1855. A double culvert at Solvay.

Erected by New York State Canals.

Marker series. This marker is included in the Erie Canal marker series.

Location. 43° 14.148′ N, 78° 20.429′ W. Marker is in Ridgeway, New York, in Orleans County. Marker is on Culvert Road (County Route 35) ¼ mile south of Portage Road when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is about several feet off-center and atop the culvert on the Canalway Trail (Erie Canal Heritage Trail on Google), which is the towpath. The marker can be seen from Culvert Road southbound, but certainly cannot be read from the road. Marker is in this post office area: Medina NY 14103, United States of America.

The canal is drained for the winter. Culvert Road is in the background.

By Anton Schwarzmueller, March 22, 2015

5. The Medina Culvert and Marker

Southbound, Culvert Road.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on March 27, 2015, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York. This page has been viewed 227 times since then and 6 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on March 27, 2015, by Anton Schwarzmueller of Wilson, New York.